NextVR and FOX Sports Partner For Live Virtual Reality Broadcast of U.S. Open
Network's First U.S. Open Brings Historic First Live Multi-Camera VR Broadcast Experience
LAGUNA BEACH, Calif., June 17, 2015 /PRNewswire/ -- NextVR, a technology company pioneering capture and delivery of live and on-demand virtual reality experiences, and FOX Sports, the sports broadcasting arm for 21st Century FOX, today announced a partnership to bring live streaming VR to the 2015 U.S. Open. FOX Sports inaugural broadcast of this longstanding USGA tradition kicks off on June 18, 2015 with VR viewership available to fans visiting select hospitality areas of the course.
"Our ongoing efforts with NextVR are exactly the kind of relationships we are exploring with our new FOX Lab platform," said John Entz, FOX Sports President, Production. "Virtual reality is most certainly delivering a new level of excitement to next-generation production possibilities and it will be great to gauge the reactions of the audiences who get to sample it at the U.S. Open this weekend on FOX."
NextVR is leading the way in providing live, long-form broadcast quality content across all virtual reality devices, to a global audience. NextVR has tested and proven its live delivery platform with the NBA, NHL, MLB, and partnered with FOX Sports earlier this year to broadcast the NASCAR Sprint Cup Series in California.
At the U.S. Open's VIP tents, approximately 100-300 visitors daily can be immersed in NextVR's live virtual reality experience. Five camera rigs will be placed at premium vantage points around the course. Fans will have the ability in real time, to virtually visit the most active holes and be instantly immersed in the action. NextVR will also live stream the U.S. Open VR experience to FOX Sports locations in New York, Los Angeles and Vancouver.
"We're thrilled to be working with FOX Sports again and to be part of their inaugural U.S. Open coverage," said DJ Roller, Co-Founder, NextVR. "This demonstrates FOX Sports' confidence in NextVR's technology and their commitment to bring groundbreaking experiences to fans. It's a major milestone for both companies."
U.S. Open 2015 highlights as well as other premium experiences will be included on the NextVR portal, which will be available on all virtual reality devices, including Oculus, Samsung, Sony and others. The portal will enable fully-immersive content to be streamed with pristine quality using current home and mobile Internet connections
ABOUT NextVR
NextVR is the first and only technology company to enable the transmission of live, long-form virtual reality content in broadcast quality – leading the way for live and on-demand VR to become a mainstream entertainment medium. NextVR is executing on a global scale to bring live sporting events, large-scale concerts, compelling cinematic productions, and more, to virtual reality – with technology that captures every detail of the scene and the action. Launched in 2009, NextVR has a vast IP portfolio with more than 23 patents granted and pending for the capture, compression, transmission, and display of virtual reality content. NextVR's platform also allows fully immersive content to be streamed with pristine quality using current home and mobile Internet connections. Founded by veterans in stereoscopic imaging technology, software development and an award-winning filmmaker – NextVR provides a deeply immersive experience. For more information, go to http://www.nextvr.com/
About FOX Sports
FOX Sports is the umbrella entity representing 21st Century FOX's wide array of multi-platform US-based sports assets. Built with brands capable of reaching more than 100 million viewers in a single weekend, FOX Sports includes ownership and interests in linear television networks, digital and mobile programming, broadband platforms, multiple web sites, joint-venture businesses and several licensing partnerships. FOX Sports includes the sports television arm of the FOX Broadcasting Company; FOX Sports 1; FOX Sports 2; Fox's 22 regional sports networks, their affiliated regional web sites and FSN national programming; FOX Soccer Plus and FOX Soccer 2Go; FOX Deportes and FOX College Sports. In addition, FOX Sports also encompasses FOX Sports Digital, which includes FOXSports.com, FOX Sports GO, Whatifsports.com and Yardbarker.com. Also included in the Group are FOX's interests in joint-venture businesses Big Ten Network and BTN 2Go, as well as licensing agreements that establish the FOX Sports Radio Network.
SOURCE NextVR
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